“It’s been a worthy facility”: Chase Elliott glad NASCAR listened to the fans demanding Iowa’s return

Chase Elliott recently shared his take on NASCAR returning to Iowa with a first-ever Cup Series race scheduled later this month. Late last year, NASCAR announced that it'd be returning to Iowa Speedway, and as per the sport's most popular driver, Chase Elliott, it was about time.

Speaking ahead of the upcoming race at Sonoma, Elliott was asked about his thoughts on going to Iowa later this month, a racetrack he has raced at before.

Elliott revealed what excites him the most about NASCAR's return to Iowa, as well as what it means for the fans.

"I think what's exciting for me about it is I remember going there with K&N and Xfinity, and for whatever reason I remember fans particularly always talking about how bad they want the Cup race so I'm just excited they finally got a Cup race. I feel like it's been a worthy facility for a long time and whatever the reason we may be, or however long we go, I think it's good they've done things right over the years. They've got one and I hope they make the most of it," Elliott said. [4:05]

When asked if there are any other racetracks he feels the same way about, Chase Elliott named Nashville Fairgrounds as "a really good one."

It's worth mentioning that Elliott won a race at Iowa Speedway back in 2012 during his ARCA Menards Series East/West days. In fact, several current Cup drivers have won a race at Iowa, including William Byron, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Ryan Blaney, and more.

NASCAR returning to Iowa is Rusty Wallace's 'dream come true', Hamlin expects a sold-out event

Former NASCAR driver and a member of the Hall of Fame, Rusty Wallace, spoke about his excitement at seeing Iowa making a comeback on the Cup calendar. Wallace is not only a legend of the sport, but he's also the co-founder of the track in Iowa.

“This is a dream come true. This track was built with the intent of hosting a NASCAR Cup Series race one day, and to finally see it come together is a testament to the tenacity of the great race fans in Iowa," Wallace said as per NASCAR last year.

One of the sport's current superstars, Denny Hamlin predicted the stands at Iowa to be full. Speaking on Actions Detrimental after the Iowa announcement, Hamlin said "the crowd will be packed" on the racetrack, which has a seating capacity of 30,000 people.

"To me, that will be no question that it will be a sold-out event," the Joe Gibbs Racing driver added.

Hamlin's prediction turned out to be true as all three NASCAR races at Iowa Speedway were sold out three months before the scheduled races.

The first-ever Cup race at Iowa Speedway is all set for June 16, with the green flag dropping at 7:00 p.m. ET.